Australian Infrastructure Services Provider Takes Down Systems

September 29, 2023

INCIDENT

The Australian infrastructure services provider Ventia says a cyberattack on the weekend of July 8 and 9 is contained. The attack on the Sydney-headquartered essential infrastructure services provider caused it to take key systems offline. However, in a July 12 statement, Ventia says its key internal systems have been safely re-enabled and external-facing networks are systematically being restored. Ventia is giving little away about the nature of the cyberattack, but the company’s decision to shut down its systems is a characteristic response to a ransomware-style attack.

An APAC Analyst Technical Director at DarkTrace says some of Ventia’s systems were offline for at least three days and switching off services would significantly impact customers. “Ventia are an important pillar in the management of critical infrastructure. They operate sites across Australia and New Zealand on behalf of defence, electricity, gas, and water companies,”

Incident Date

July 8, 2023

Location

Australia

Estimated Cost

3 days downtime - possibly costing millions/day

Victims

Type of Malware

Threat Source

No threat source identified